Aripiprazole augmentation in poor insight obsessive-compulsive disorder: a case report

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Neuroscience
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) significantly impairs social functioning and causes disability.
• The poor insight subtype of OCD, marked by lack of illness awareness, presents unique treatment challenges.
• Patients with poor insight OCD often show limited response to standard serotonergic drugs, necessitating augmentation strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of aripiprazole as an augmentation therapy for a patient with poor insight obsessive-compulsive disorder.
• To explore treatment options for individuals with OCD refractory to high-dose serotonin reuptake inhibitors.

Main Methods:

• A case review of a patient with a history of poor insight obsessive-compulsive disorder.
• Treatment involved high-dose serotonin reuptake inhibitors followed by augmentation with aripiprazole.

Main Results:

• Initial treatment with high-dose serotonin reuptake inhibitors yielded a poor outcome.
• Augmentation with aripiprazole was introduced following the lack of response to monotherapy.

Conclusions:

• Aripiprazole may be a viable augmentation option for patients with poor insight OCD who are poor responders to serotonergic agents.
• Further research is warranted to establish the role of atypical antipsychotics in augmenting OCD treatment for this specific patient population.